Blog entries tagged Summit for a cause

“I´ve made it to the top!”

Andrés Cruz — Tue, 16 Jun 2009 04:00:00 +0100

"At 12:15 pm, Russian time, we summited. It was eight hours of climbing, We started walking at 4:15 a.m, even though the forecast was not favorable. When they woke us up they told us, ‘it's still not snowing, but it's not too bad. There is a chance we face an avalanche, though'. Nobody had any sort of hope. But we still had to try.

We took a lift from 4.050 metres to 4.500 metres. AfterLeer más

No summit today, maybe tomorrow

Andrés Cruz — Sun, 14 Jun 2009 04:00:00 +0100

We were advised not to go because it was snowing. There was a thunderstorm last night. So they told us we shouldn't attempt to summit today and I agreed. The idea of being at 5.200 metres and -35 degrees with very strong winds is not at all appealing to me.

This caused some friLeer más

"I have my Colombian flag with me, and it's huge"

Andrés Cruz — Sat, 13 Jun 2009 04:00:00 +0100

Today was a day of preparation. We went up to 4.050 metres, which took only about an hour and a half. We arrived at the 'Priut 11' camp site, where we will sleep. Once we arrived, we set up our beds and began to train with our ice axes, which we need to use very carefully once we start. In case one of us falls, we can stick it in Leer más

"God and the weather will decide if we can climb or not"

Andrés Cruz — Fri, 12 Jun 2009 04:00:00 +0100

"Today I realised how much respect one owes to the mountain. We hiked up to 4.700 metres in the middle of a huge snow storm (by the way, the gighest I've ever climbed). We were at minus 3 °C , and the wind was going 20 kilometres per hour. I was freezing because we were walking so slowly, and I had to stop three times to put things on to protect myself from the cold: My snow pants, a scarf, ear mLeer más

"It's been an interesting day"

Andrés Cruz — Thu, 11 Jun 2009 04:00:00 +0100

"What an interesting day. We took a trolley up to 3.500 metres and then we walked up to 3.750.

Tonight we will stay at a camp site for climbers and skiers. It's called 'The Barrels', and it looks like the barrel that goes in a petrol truck but 3 or 4 times its size, with several rooms. It's all very quaint and typical. The Russian army used these barrels in the arctic zones, and therefore they'Leer más

4 days from the summit

Andrés Cruz — Wed, 10 Jun 2009 04:00:00 +0100

Andrés Cruz is still on his way to conquer the highest mountain in Europe. This his his journal.

"We've begun the climb. Today we reached 3,750 metres. We'll go back down to sleep at 3000 metres and then we won't come back down again until we summit.

One thing I didn't know was that Mt. Elbrus is an inactive volcano. That makes the climb more difficult, because the paths are coveLeer más

"I want to be an inspiration for other people"

Andrés Cruz — Tue, 09 Jun 2009 04:00:00 +0100

"We went to an astronomy observatory located 3.200 metres above sea level. It was an extremely hard climb because we walked on the edge of the mountain as our guides wanted to see how we worked as a group. So we hiked, arrived at the station and sat in a snow-free area where we ate our lunch. That's all we did today, and yet I am very, very tired.

"When I was in the middle ofLeer más

Summit for a cause: Day 1

Andrés Cruz — Mon, 08 Jun 2009 04:00:00 +0100

Andrés Cruz is already in Russia. Read his testimony on the first two days on the way to the summit.
Also, remember to make a donation to support his cause.

At this very moment, Andrés Cruz is four hours away from Moscow, in a valley surrounded by mountains. He spoke with Conexión Colombia at 5:30 pm Russian time. The following is his testimony, right from his descent on the second day of his adventure.

To Russia with joy

Andrés Cruz — Fri, 05 Jun 2009 09:00:00 +0100

Time has really flown and I leave for Russia tomorrow! The last ten days have been all about doing harder training sessions and working to get the message out so we can have the donations come in. I think the training aspect has gone better than the communications aspect, but then again everyone tells me that the donations will start coming in once I summit and the days immediately after. Here is to hoping!!

Letters from Cartagena

Andrés Cruz — Fri, 22 May 2009 09:00:00 +0100

I want to begin with some great news, The Summit for a Cause campaign is only a week old and we have already raised close to 500 dollars!! Thank you for your support.

Should you wish to donate please click here:

To get on an even higher high, it’s Friday and the teenage moms from Colombia have sent me some letters and a video thanking me for supporting their program! Here isthLeer más

Stairway to Heaven on a broken toe!

Andrés Cruz — Tue, 19 May 2009 09:00:00 +0100

Apologies for not writing earlier but I have been quite busy with work and also have family visiting.

Another question I have gotten asked a lot recently is what I am doing in order to be fit and ready for the trek up the mountain. My wife’s bestfriend went through a list of potential nightmare scenarios of what could happen to me during the climb and this ensured thaLeer más

Why am I doing this?

Andrés Cruz — Tue, 12 May 2009 09:00:00 +0100

Summit Day minus 32 days

So let me cut to the chase and answer the why question from the beginning. Why am I training and getting ready to spend 9 days in the Caucasus attempting to summit Europe’s highest peak: Mount Elbrus? Before I give you my reasons rest assured you are not the only one thinking about it. A good friend of mine said that it was a great way to tackle mid life crisis Leer más